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Item:381849413272Click here to see 1,000 archaeology/ancient history books and 2,000 ancient artifacts, antique gemstones, antique jewelry! The Jesus Papyrus: The Most Sensational Evidence on the Origins of the Gospels since the Discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls by Carsten Peter Thiede & Matthew D'Ancona. DESCRIPTION: Hardback with Dust Jacket: 207 pages. Publisher: Weidenfeld & Nicolson; (1996). At first sight the Jesus papyrus, a few verses in Greek from St. Matthew's Gospel, could scarcely be less prepossessing. It seems little more than three tiny pieces of old paper clasped between two slides of glass in a forgotten Oxford college showcase. History does not obviously cling to it, let alone faith. Yet this ancient papyrus is one of the most important documents in the world. In one of the most astonishing scholarly claims of recent times, the German papyrologist Carsten Peter Thiede argues that this is the oldest known fragment of the New Testament in book form. His thesis has already generated controversy all over the world. According to Thiede, the Jesus papyrus, which includes no fewer than four of Christ's sayings, is the first material evidence that Saint Matthew's Gospel was written during the lifetime if eyewitnesses, that it records history as experienced by those who were there when it happened. The papyrus itself, written says Thiede forty years after the Crucifixion, or possibly even earlier, was unearthed in Upper Egypt and bequeathed to Magdalen College, Oxford, in 1901. It is conceivable therefore that it might have been read or handled by one of the "Five hundred brothers and sisters" (1 Corinthians 15:6) whom Paul says saw the resurrected Jesus. Not since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls in 1947 has there been such a potentially important breakthrough in our understanding of Christ's time on earth. Combining immaculate scholarship and detective work, "The Jesus Papyrus" is a thrilling account by Carsten Peter Thiede and Matthew d'Ancona of the discovery and what it means. CONDITION: NEW! Unblemished except VERY slight edge and corner shelf wear and rubbing to dustjacket (dustjacket is gloss black and so shows rub marks very easily, even merely from being shelved between other books). Very minimal wear consistent with new stock from an open-shelf book store (such as Barnes & Noble, etc.). Pages are pristine; clean, crisp, unmarked, unmutilated, tightly bound, unambiguously unread. Satisfaction guaranteed. In stock, ready to ship. No disappointments, no excuses. PLEASE SEE IMAGES BELOW FOR SAMPLE PAGES FROM INSIDE OF BOOK. PLEASE SEE PUBLISHER, PROFESSIONAL, AND READER REVIEWS BELOW. PUBLISHER REVIEW: REVIEW: In 1901, the Reverend Charles B. Huleatt acquired three pieces of a New Testament manuscript on the murky antiquities market of Luxor, Egypt. He donated these papyrus fragments to his alma mater, Magdalen College in Oxford, England, where they sat in a display case and drew very little attention. Nearly a century later, the fragments, part of the Gospel of Matthew and thought to date from 180-200 A.D., were reevaluated by scholar Carsten Peter Thiede. His research showed the bits of papyrus to be significantly older, written about 60 A.D. But what is all the fuss about? How can three ancient papyrus fragments be so significant? How did Thiede arrive at this radical early dating? And what does it mean to the average Christian? Now readers have authoritative answers to these pivotal questions, in a book written by Thiede himself and by Times of London journalist Matthew d'Ancona, who originally broke the story to the public. Indeed, the Magdalen Papyrus corroborates three traditions: Saint Matthew actually wrote the Gospel bearing his name; he wrote it within a generation of Jesus' death; and the Gospel stories about Jesus are true. Some will vehemently deny Thiede's claims, others will embrace them, but nobody can ignore "The Jesus Papyrus". Carsten Peter Thiede, is a German papyrologist and one of the world's pre-eminent authorities on the history and texts of the first century, Thiede ran the Institute of German Studies in London, produced documentaries for BBC TV and is now director of the Institute for Basic Epistemological Research at Paderborn, Germany. Co-author with Matthew d'Ancona of the bestseller, "Eyewitness to Jesus", he has written numerous books including "Jesus: Life or Legend?", and also with Matthew d'Ancona, "The Quest for the True Cross". Thiede is Professor of Early Christian History at STH Basel, Switzerland; teaches at the Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel; and is a member of the International Papyrologists' Association. He is also an ordained Minister in the Anglican (Episcopal) Church. Matthew D'Ancona, formerly a senior editor on The Times, is now deputy editor of the Sunday Telegraph. PROFESSIONAL REVIEWS: REVIEW: D'Ancona, an assistant editor at the London Times, and Thiede, the noted papyrologist, offer their side of a raging controversy over Thiede's claim to have identified a Greek fragment of the Gospel of Mark from the Dead Sea Scrolls written no later than 68 A.D. and to have redated fragments of the Gospel of Matthew to not much later. If the early dating and other evidence cited and deduced are sustained, they will demolish some of the major tenets of liberal critical New Testament scholarship. This accomplished by establishing that at least Mark and Matthew were written by eyewitnesses or contemporaries within a Christianity that was well developed and separate from Judaism before the destruction of Jerusalem. Thiede mounts a scathing criticism of New Testament scholars. Although the book is a window into the value, possibilities, and methods of an arcane specialty, it is written in a conversational prose accessible to any educated non-specialist. Much background information on New Testament study and interpretation and the history of the discovery of the Matthew fragments help to maintain interest and relate the technical evidence to the reader's world. If accepted, this discovery would revolutionize our understanding of the origin of the Gospels and just about every other aspect of earliest Christianity. REVIEW: How reliable are the Gospel accounts on which Christianity bases its knowledge of the life and work of Jesus of Nazareth? Are they eyewitness accounts written by followers of Jesus? Or are they accounts written long after his death by Christians concerned with a new doctrine? These and other questions were thrown into sharp relief when, on Christmas Eve 1994,Times of London writer D'Ancona reported that a German scholar, Carsten Peter Thiede, using the new science of papyrology, had re-dated to roughly 60 A.D. three papyrus fragments of the Gospel of Matthew, held in Oxford's Magdalen College Library since 1901. The most far-reaching implication of Thiede's work is that the Gospel of Matthew, in addition to being the earliest Gospel written, could be an eyewitness account. D'Ancona and Thiede detail the forensic science used to redate the Magdalen papyri. Thiede then challenges the critical methods, historical and textual, that have been used by scholars to establish the traditional dating of the Gospels. The authors, however, don't acknowledge that papyrology is as subject to criticism as are the methods they disparage. Nor is their argument that Matthew is the earliest Gospel a new one. The thesis has been a workable alternative to the priority of Mark for over 100 years. However, the irony of their claim, that forensic science establishes the grounds for faith is rich, and this book is certain to provoke controversy among scholars and lay readers alike. REVIEW: Are three scraps of papyrus long moldering in an Oxford college the most sensational evidence of Christ on earth since the Turin Shroud? This compelling story shows how three small papyrus fragments vaulted from near-obscurity to become recognized as the treasured missing proof that Matthew was an eyewitness to Jesus. New Testament scholarship may be revolutionized by three old scraps of papyrus no bigger than postage stamps. It lands us in the heart of the great question, the greatest perhaps, of all questions: what historical evidence of Jesus do we possess? The problem is that the answer upsets the whole theological establishment. READER REVIEWS: REVIEW: Not only does the book present convincing analysis, it prompts us to look for the re-evaluation of manuscript fragments in other collections using the techniques described so well by Thiede. The book really should receive more serious consideration from scholars. It's been sadly neglected. Thiede is obviously something of a radical, but Biblical scholarship needs men who are willing to explore completely new avenues, particularly when they are as skilled as Thiede is. The question of when and how the gospels were written is really wide open. We have a monumental heap of investigation and speculation proving very little or nothing. We need new approaches. Those who don't seek can't find. REVIEW: I finished this book in two days and found it very intriguing as to a topic new to me. Prior to my reading, I thought that the Egyptian found early 2nd century fragment of John's gospel was the earliest recovered piece of New Testament literature. However, this book proves that 3 fragments, also Egyptian found, are pre-Jerusalem destruction (AD 70) although once dated as 3rd-4th century. This book will be beneficial and faith augmenting to Christians because it shows that Matthew's gospel was written in the 60s of the first century, if not earlier, contrary to the vein of critical scholars who late date the New Testament and claim the real Jesus is clouded by post-destruction inventions. With this earlier, more historically reliable dating of the Matthean fragments, we can put Mark's gospel at an even earlier date! Speaking of the Markan account, this book also goes into some depth in establishing that a fragment found in Cave 7 at Qumran (home to the Dead Sea Scrolls) is indeed a portion of Mark, making its latest date 68 A.D.. The authors do very well in justifying their conclusions, which they do also by juxtaposition of the fragments and other works of antiquity in what seems to be a valid methodology. I feel the Magdalen papyrus (the 3 Matthean fragments as to which the title refers) could very possibly to some extent revolutionize New Testament historical thinking by serving as a new paradigm. Anyone interested in Papyrology or New Testament historicity should read The Jesus Papyrus! REVIEW: Thiede makes a potentially dry subject interesting. His discussion of ancient writing scripts is reserved but forceful. In short a must read for those interested in the New Testament. My favorite chapter was the fourth. Its summary of Huleatt, the Victorian missionary and scholar, gives us a small window of life in the last half of the 19th century. This book is a good counterpoint for those who claim that the Gospels were written long after Christ died. REVIEW: This book is the work of a news reporter who researched the work of Carston Thiede, a German paleographist, who bought into Thiede's theory that two papyri of the Gospel of Matthew should be re-dated from the end of the 2nd century to the mid 1st century. Concerning the substance of d'Ancona's story, Thiede's theory that P64 and 67 are not connected to P4 is given some credence by other scholars such as Comfort. However Thiede's paleographical dating methods are found to be selective; certain letters are compared and certain other letters which would contradict Thiede's theory are not compared. (Klaus Wachtel wrote about this is in a German publication in 1995.) D'Ancona's book is exceptional because of the depth of information he includes on paleography and ancient writing practices. However it should be noted that few scholars accept Thiede's theory. REVIEW: I don't believe in "final proof" for the dating of any past historical evidence. However, there are better argument and worse arguments, and Thiede's work currently represents the "state-of-the-art" best arguments for the manuscripts with which he deals. If critics who see their worldviews threatened believe otherwise, they are urged to review the evidence for themselves, to see if they agree or not. The prejudicial comments and reviews attacking Thiede's scholarship do not in themselves establish an argument against his work. I always ship books Media Mail in a padded mailer. This book is shipped FOR FREE via USPS INSURED media mail (“book rate”). 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